𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟗

𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 

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╰┈˚ · ° .  FEYRE AND I WALKED SIDE BY SIDE, almost coordinated. For a second I thought that we were back in the Mortal Lands, with fingers numb from the cold and legs tired from hours of hunting. But then, the sight of The Suriel, brought me back to reality. No winter, only Spring. Our hands clutching our weapons, not to hunt but to approach the being in front us caught in the snare.

"Are you one of the Suriel?" Feyre said quietly, being careful of the creature before us.

It went rigid. And sniffed. Once. Twice. Then slowly, it turned towards us, the dark veil draped over its bald head blowing in a phantom breeze. A face that looked like it had been crafted from dried, weatherworn bone, its skin either forgotten or discarded, a lipless mouth and too-long teeth held by blackened gums, slitted holes for nostrils, and eyes... eyes that were nothing more than swirling pits of milky white—the white of death, the white of sickness, the white of clean-picked corpses.

Peeking above the ragged neck of its dark robes was a body of veins and bones, as dried and solid and horrific as the texture of its face. It let go of the snare, and its too-long fingers clicked against each other as it studied us with his unnerving eyes.

"Humans," it said, and its voice was at once one and many, old and young, beautiful and grotesque. "Did you set this clever, wicked trap for me?"

"Are you one of the Suriel?" I asked, repeating my twin's question. It was just another being, I repeated to myself. It breathed, it could bleed, it could die.

"Indeed I am." Click, click, click went its fingers against each other, one for each word.

"Then the trap was for you." I continued, tilting my head while clicking my tongue on the roof of my mouth.

"I have not seen a human woman for an age. Come closer so I might look upon my captors."

We did no such thing. We were humans, not stupid.

It let out a huffing, awful laugh. "And which of my brethren betrayed my secrets to you?"

"None of them. Our mother told us stories of you."

"Lies—I can smell the lies on your breath." It sniffed again, its fingers clacking together. It cocked its head to the side, an erratic, sharp movement, the dark veil snapping with it. "What would two human women want from the Suriel?"

"You tell me." I replied with a small smirk. I wanted to snap my fingers like it did, but I contained the urge to mock the powerful creature before me.

It let out another low laugh. "A test? A foolish and useless test, for if you dared to capture me, then you must want knowledge very badly." We said nothing, and it smiled with that lipless mouth, its grayed teeth horrifically large. "Ask me your questions, humans, and then free me."

"Is there—is there truly no way for us to go home?" Feyre asked.

"Not unless you seek to be killed, and your family with you. You must remain here."

"What do you know about Tamlin?" Feyre asked The Suriel. I saw how she looked at The High Lord. She was falling in love and that was dangerous on so many levels. But I couldn't get myself to discourage her. She was happy, my twin sister was the happiest I had ever seen her in a long time.

"More specific, human. Be more specific. For I know a good many things about the High Lord of the Spring Court."

"Tamlin is—Tamlin is a High Lord?"

Click, click, click. "You did not know. Interesting." The Suriel answered. It's words clear as it said.

"Did you also not know that this is the Spring Court, little human?"

"Yes—yes, I knew about that."

The Suriel settled on the ground. "Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, Dawn, Day, and Night," it mused, as if Feyre hadn't even answered. But most of all, I didn't miss the way its eyes trained to me as it spoke of the last court. "The seven Courts of Prythian, each ruled by a High Lord, all of them deadly in their own way. They are not merely powerful—they are Power."

"Everyone at the Spring Court is stuck wearing a mask, and yet you aren't," She said cautiously. "Are you not a member of the Court?"

"I am a member of no Court. I am older than the High Lords, older than Prythian, older than the bones of this world."

"And what can be done about this blight that has spread in Prythian, stealing and altering the magic? Where did it come from?"

"Stay with the High Lord, human," the Suriel said. "That's all you can do. You will be safe. Do not interfere; do not go looking for answers after today, or you will be devoured by the shadow over Prythian. He will shield you from it, so stay close to him, both of you and all will be righted."

"Where did the blight come from?"

Those milky eyes narrowed. "The High Lord does not know that you came here today, does he? He does not know that his human woman came to trap a Suriel, because he cannot give her the answers she seeks. But it is too late, human—for the High Lord, for you, perhaps for your realm as well ...Across the violent western sea, there is another faerie kingdom called Hybern, ruled by a wicked, powerful king. Yes, a king," he said when Feyre raised a brow. "Not a High Lord—there, his territory is not divided into courts. There, he is law unto himself. Humans no longer exist in that realm—though his throne is made of their bones."

Braken had talked to the young assassins about the King of Hybern, but as everything Fae-related, he did not go into much detail. Only how to effectively kill one. The majority of my knowledge was from the books that I had read at The Temple when I was able to sneak into the forbidden part of the library. Many times I was caught and punished for it, but to me, all that knowledge made all of it worth it.

"For some time now, the King of Hybern has found himself unhappy with the Treaty the other ruling High Fae of the world made with you humans long ago. He resents that he was forced to sign it, to let his mortal slaves go and to remain confined to his damp green isle at the edge of the world. And so, a hundred years ago, he dispatched his most-trusted and loyal commanders, his deadliest warriors, remnants of the ancient armies that he once sailed to the continent to wage such a brutal war against you humans, all of them as hungry and vile as he. As spies and courtiers and lovers, they infiltrated the various High Fae courts and kingdoms and empires around the world for fifty years, and when they had gathered enough information, he made his plan. But nearly five decades ago, one of his commanders disobeyed him. The Deceiver. And—" The Suriel straightened. "We are not alone."

With our attention now sharper, we scanned the trees, but everything had already gone silent in the presence of the Suriel.

"Humans, you must free me and run," it said, those death-filled eyes widening. "Run for the High Lord's manor. Do not forget what I told you—stay with the High Lord, and live to see everything righted."

"What is it?"

"The naga—faeries made of shadow and hate and rot. They heard my scream, and they smelled you. Free me, human. They will cage me if they catch me here. Free me and return to the High Lord's side." Its eyes turned to me, sharp and deadly.

Shit. Shit. Feyre went to lunge for the snare, but four shadowy figures slipped through the birch trees, so dark that they seemed made from a starless night.

The naga were sprung from a nightmare. Covered in dark scales and nothing more, they were a horrendous combination of serpentine features and male humanoid bodies whose powerful arms ended in polished black, flesh-shredding talons. Their huge, almond-shaped eyes greedily took in the Suriel, Feyre and I.

The four of them paused across the clearing, the Suriel between us,

The creature smiled, a row of razor-sharp teeth greeting them as a silvery forked tongue darted out.

"The Dark Mother has sent us a gift today, brothers," he said, gazing at the Suriel, who was clawing at the snare now. The naga's amber eyes shifted toward us sisters. "And a meal."

"Not much to eat," another one said, flexing its claws.

"Humans! " the Suriel begged, a plea in its tone.

I assessed the naga before returning my sight to The Suriel. I launched one of my blades to the tether holding the creature, cutting through it and freeing it from the snare. "You'll be free, assassin. But only with your death." It said. His words pierced through my ears like an arrow through my heart, and just as I snapped my head towards it, The Suriel was already gone. But there was no time to think twice about what it had said.

I twirled the curled knives between my fingers from the holes in the handle, sizing the nagas and searching for the access point for an easier kill.

A fight was about to begin and my sister was not to be here when it would.

"Run, Feyre. Run." I told her.

"Mai." Feyre whispered. Fear laced her words making them sake as they came out. Fear for her, for me. She didn't want to leave me behind, I knew that much.

"GO!" I yelled, not sparing her a glance. "It's better this way. I'll fight better if you are not here to see me." Half it was true, I didn't want her to see me killing anyone, even these creatures. And because if she was there, I would be too worried about her safety and my fighting would be sloppy.

Fortunately, when my ears caught the sound of the quick steps going farther away, I knew that my sister had run away and back to the Manor.

I took a breath, shading the skin of the normal human that I pretend to be, until I was raw and exposed with what my soul had become. Red like the blood that had coated my fingers too many times to count.

"Time to play, little beasts. Or are you too afraid of a simple human?" I taunted. If they were angry, they wouldn't be careful. Fighting with rage was never a good thing. Sure, it could give you strength, but anger could easily cloud your mind if you didn't know how to use it.

The nagas snarled before one launched himself at me.

I avoided him easily with a step to the side. My body, mind and soul craved the fight. My ear caught a sound coming from behind me, the hair rising on my neck confirmed it. With a fluid motion I escaped the attack from behind, crouching down and bringing both my knives on the side of his serpentine body. Even if the anatomy was different, blood vessels would for sure be there like the one in the tights, and with the slash of the blades through the hard scales, black blood sprouted from the wound as screeching sound escaped his humanoid mouth.

I rose from my crouched position, swiftly cutting the first one's throat that had been distracted by his brother's screams. Turning around I plunged the knife in the heart of the other one, who didn't even notice until it was too late.

They both fell to the ground, now dead with blood soaking the grass of the clearing. I was drenched in their blood, coated in black and death as I stared at the remaining naga. But I expected to be two of them, not one.

A scream echoed through the forest. My sister's scream. Ice cold fear invaded my body. My hands loosed the tight hold I had on my weapons, and for that second of distraction, I didn't see the last naga ready to attack me.

He pushed me to the ground, caging me under his body and serpentine end. He held my arms down with his hands. Both my knives out of my reach as they fell out of my grasp when I was brought down.

I cursed myself for the stupid error, and in that moment, the words spoken by Braken echoed in her mind, freezing my heart and making the walls that I had built around it for years thicken.

Never take your eyes away from your enemy. Never distract in the middle of a fight. Just a moment and you are dead.

"What are your last words, human?" The naga said mockingly testata

My eyes grew dark and cold, no emotions to be read on my face. I headbutted the naga without a second thought. He let out a loud shrink, losing the hold he had on one of my hands for a second to clutch his in pain forehead, and it was just enough for me to reach one of the boots and take my only remaining blade. With all my strength, I stabbed the naga in the side of his neck. His blood falling down onto my face and body, showering me with his blood now mixing itself with the one of his own brothers.

I shrugged the corpse of the dead naga away from me. Rising to my feet and quickly collecting the curved knives back before rushing into the forest searching for my sister.

Running as fast as I could, I used the trees and their shadows as a cover. My feet light on the ground, steps unhearable as I put to use all the training techniques that I had learned during the years.

It wasn't too long before I saw my sister with the High Lord of the Spring Court.

"I was tracking a pack of them— four escaped, and must have followed your scent through the woods. I heard you scream." I heard Tamlin say to Feyre.

"No need for you to hunt the rest now, High Lord. They are already dead." I spoke, making my presence known to the duo.

For a second Tamlin went into a fighting stance, not having heard me approaching, before he relaxed as he recognized me.

"Mai!" Feyre yelled running to me. She too had blood everywhere and tears now started to escape her eyes at the sight of my blood-coated state.

Feyre threw herself to me, hugging me tightly and whispering apologizes for leaving me alone to fight the Nagas.

I stiffened in my sister's embrace. I couldn't help it. Right now my walls were so high and thick, that not even a whisper of emotion could pass through them. My face was nothing but a void of any warmth and emotion.

My arms felt like lead, so heavy that it was a struggle to wrap them around Feyre's middle and reciprocate the hug that she so wholeheartedly felt like giving me.

You almost died— I thought. My jaw wanted to clench at the sight of blood drenching her.

"You don't need to apologize, Feyre. I told you to run." My voice was steady. No emotion. Feeling as if a corpse had talked. And maybe, it wasn't too far from reality.

Feyre tightened her hold on me, as if was too afraid to let me go. I knew what she was thinking. She knew that a lot of times when we were still in the mortal lands, when I came back from a mission, I would grow cold. Distant. Just as I first was when I came back after those four years away. Gelid and unfeeling.

"Are you hurt? I am sorry I didn't see one running away." I whispered as I brushed the tears from her twin sister's face. A motion that felt that I had to do, not heartfelt.

"It's fine. Tamlin killed him." She said, trying to send a reassuring smile my way.

I looked at the High Lord, giving him a small nod as a thank you. It was the least I could do.

"Did- did you kill the other nagas?" He asked with an uncertain tone in his voice.

"They are that way in the clear. Three less naga to deal with." I answered pointing behind her before looking at the corpse of the one that had escaped "Four if you count this one." With a last look towards the two, I spoke again while starting to walk away "I see you both back at the manor."

────༺☽༓☾༻────

╰┈˚ · ° .   Just as I entered the manor, leaving a trail of soil and blackened blood after me, I noticed Lucien pacing back and forth in the foyer. Face coated in distress, hands clenching to his side before he trailed his fingers through his long red auburn hair.

"Maiven! By the cauldron, what happened?" Lucian exclaimed in full voice as he scanned me head to toes.

"Run in some Nagas. I killed three of them. The fourth was Tamlin's kill." I explained unbothered, like it didn't seem like I had bathed in their blood as I was already climbing up the stairs.

"You killed three Nagas?" He asked with wide eyes. His metal eyes shining from under his fox mask.

I stopped on the stairs, half turning so I would've been able to look at him. Without missing a beat, I took out the knives that I stole from his collection and threw them to the ground at his feet. The blades, coated in a layer of dried blood, clinked against the marble floor.

"I apologize for the stains of blood. I couldn't help it."

His chuckles were the last thing that I heard before I was in the hallway and back in what was my room.

As soon as the door closed behind me, I slided my body down to the floor. My back and head rested on the door as I closed my eyes, trying to calm the frenetic way my heart was beating.

My sister was almost killed today and it was my fault.

This thought had haunted my mind from the moment Feyre scream had echoed through the forest. I could still hear it in the back of my mind, like an always-present presence. Its loudness increasing by each passing second.

But then, other words took their places. And I didnt know if they were worse or not. It was something that Braken used to say everyday for the four years during my training at The Temple. Something that he continued to remind me of during the following years.

And with a single tear running down my face I whispered out loud those words tricking my mind into thinking it was him that was uttering.

"Love is weakness."

✎

˗ˏˋ 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞 ˊˎ˗

Hello everyone!

I hope you liked the fight scene!!

I am sorry to say that the sad and depressing part are still not finished yet. There is still a lot our girl Maiven will have to go through.

Little foreshadowing in this chapter?

Anyways, thank you for reading this chapter, I'll see you on Saturday!

˚ · ° . 𝐔𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐞 . ° · ˚

𝐖𝐞𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲

𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐲

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞!

– 𝐋𝐨𝐥𝐚 ☾